The following abbreviations are herewith defined for the purposes of this patent application:
3GPP Third Generation Partnership Project
AAA Authentication, Authorization and Accounting
BSC Base Station Controller
BS Base Station
BTS Base Transceiver Station
CDMA Code Division, Multiple Access
CN Correspondent Node
CS Circuit Switched
GRE Generic Routing Encapsulation
HA Home Agent
HLR Home Location Register
IMSI International Mobile Subscriber Identity
IP Internet protocol
IWF Inter-Working Function
LDAP Lightweight Directory Access Protocol
MN Mobile Node
MS Mobile Station
MSC Mobile Switching Center
NAI Network Access Identifier
NIDS Network Initiated Data Session
PCF Packet Control Function
PDSN Packet Data Serving Node
PPP Point to Point Protocol
PS Packet Switched
PZID Packet Zone ID
RADIUS Remote Authentication Dial-In User Service
RN Radio Network
RP Radio Protocol
SDU Service Data Unit
SPZ Sub-Paging Zone
SPZ_ID Sub-Paging Zone Identifier
SQL Structured Query Language
VLR Visitor Location Register
FIGS. 1A and 1B illustrates major functional components and the interfaces of a conventional wireless network 20 suitable for operation with a MN or MS 100. Beginning with FIG. 1A, a source BS 45 includes a BSC 40 and a plurality of BTSs 50. The BSC 40 includes a SDU function that operates to identify the information transferred between peer layer entities which is not interpreted by supporting lower layer entities. On the voice side the BS 45 is coupled to a MSC 60, more specifically it is coupled via an A1 interface (both CS and PS services) to a MSC call control and management function 60A and via A2 and A5 interfaces (CS services only) to a MSC switch 60B. The MSC 60 is shown coupled to an IWF 61. The BS 45 may also be coupled via interfaces A3 (user traffic), A3 and A7 (signalling) to a target BS 45′, containing an associated BSC 40′ and BTSs 50′. On the data side the BS 45 is coupled to a PCF 30 via interfaces A8 (user traffic) and A9 (signalling). The PCF 30 is a component of the radio access network that controls the transmission of packets between the BS 45 and a PDSN 32. The PDSN 32 is responsible for the establishment, maintenance and termination of a PPP session towards the MN. It may also assign dynamic IP addresses in addition to supporting Mobile IP functionality. It provides a similar function to the GSN (GPRS Support Nodes) found in the GSM and UMTS networks. The interfaces between the PCF 30 and the PDSN 32 are designated A10 (user traffic) and A11 (signalling), and include GRE and R-P sign capability.
FIG. 1B illustrates further aspects of the wireless network 20. For example, the MSC 60 is shown connected via an IS-41 MAP interface to a VLR 62, which in turn is coupled via the IS-41 MAP to a SS-7 (signalling system seven) network 63 and thence to a HLR 64. The PDSN 32 is coupled to an IP network 70, and through the IP network 70 to a home AAA 80 and to a HA 90 (e.g., a home IP network a home access provider network, or a private network). The AAA 80 is generally a function that is used to identify a user and the user's privileges, and to record and track that user's activities. The PDSN 32 can also be coupled to a visited AAA 80′, and to one or more broker AAAs 81. Note that the target BS 45 associated with a target RN is shown to also include a PCF 30′ and a PDSN 32′, also coupled to the IP network 70.
Those skilled in the art should appreciate that the foregoing description of the wireless network 20 shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B is not intended to be an exhaustive study of wireless networks, but has been provided simply to place the ensuing discussion and description of this invention into a technological context and framework.
In order to provide an “Always On Service” the network 20 is required to push data to the MS 100. However, the CDMA network architecture as currently defined by 3GPP-2 does not include a capability for the wireless network 20 to push data to a MS 100 that is on an Idle state or mode. If the MS 100 is instead in the Active/Dormant (i.e., non-Idle) state, the PDSN 32 has knowledge of the location of the Ms 100 because of the RP session with the PCF 30.
However, for a MS 100 in the Idle state there is no corresponding RP session. A data session needs to be initiated by the MS 100 and, at present, there is no defined way for the network 20 to initiate the session set up. As such, it can be appreciated that one of the problems that arise in a network-initiated session set up is to locate the MS 100 in the network 20.
On the voice side of the network the MSC/HLR 60, 64 have exact location information for the MS 100. Thus, when a mobile terminated voice call needs to be delivered the HLR 64 is contacted to obtain the current location information, and the MS 100 is then paged efficiently by the correct group of BTSs 50. On the data side, however, the packet core network elements have data that needs to be pushed to the MS 100, but there is no interface to the HLR 64 (as can be seen in FIG. 1B). Also, in order to deliver the packet data the correct PDSN 32, PCF 30 and BSC 40 combination should be selected so that the page messages can be sent out efficiently.
It can be noted that even if there were an interface to the HLR 64 from the packet core network elements, the HLR 64 does not have the MS 100 location information in terms of the correct PCF 30 and PDSN 32 combination.
There has been a proposal to address this problem between the PCF 30 and the BSC 40 (using the A8 and A9 interfaces). Reference in this regard can be made to a document: 3GPP2 cdma2000 TSG-C, entitled “Mobile paging with mobile station sub-paging zone update”, Ke-Chi Jang et al. (Nortel Networks, 2003, C23-20030714-038R3). This document proposes an efficient way to enable a BS 45 to page a MS 100 in a smaller area. It is said that a registration zone is adequate for voice services, but for packet data service the BS 45 may need to track the MS 100 to a smaller sub-paging zone to achieve a more efficient dormant to active transition. To improve the paging with a smaller SPZ, it was proposed to broadcast a SPZ_ID in an overhead message. The MS 100 that supports this feature reports its location on the R-CSCH (Reverse Common Signaling Logical Channel, a logical channel that carries higher layer signaling traffic from the MS to the BS over a common physical channel) when it detects a SPZ change. The service provider configures the size of the SPZ, and all BSs 45 in the same SPZ have the same zone value. Based on the report from the MS 100, a network 20 with BSC 40 level control can page the MS 100 within the zone where the MS 100 sends the location report over the R-CSCH. FIG. 2, based on a figure in the C23-20030714-038R3 document, shows the various possible scenarios.
However, an unfulfilled need still exists to enable the data side of the network 20 to obtain the current BSC/PCF/PDSN association of an Idle MN, without requiring that the voice side of the network be contacted.